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I haven't logged onto my TeamLiquid account for a while to post.. it's been a while.. but this earthquake in Japan has caused me a lot of grief and reflecting since it has happened.. a lot of deep talks with my friends, I've been trying my best to stay up to date on CNN.com since the day it happened.. and to hear that 13,000 are dead & missing (including the worst hit area where 1,000 elementary, middle & high school students are either dead or missing T_T), I don't think any of my friends have thought and mourned nearly as much as I have lately..
I understand my peers and I are college students who have enough on our plates to keep busy and our minds on the last Midterms coming up, but out of (I'd say 20 of my frieds), only 5 of them would seem be interested to talk about it..
The thing I've been doing lately is asking one of my friends while 4 or 5 of us are hanging out to "count out loud 1 to 10", and they would. I would then say after "now how long do you think it'd take to get to 13,000? Every number you count until 13,000 would be a missing or dead family member to someone, including children and women.." to give a sort-of shock-reaction interest in the subject. They would then say something as "Wow stop saying depressing stuff", and then I wonder if they even knew our country is attacking Libya, or if they even know where Libya is on our map. Or who our Vice President is -_- I'd also remark "How would you feel if a tsunami wiped out two states near us and it affected us somehow, and you hear someone from a different country shrug off the incident as if they didnt care?"
I feel I had an obligation to reach out to the handful of intelligent, understanding and sympathetic Team Liquider's that also read this forum but don't log on much due to this tragic incident. Does anyone feel the same? -- as if today's society has not only lost touch of not only how precious life is but what the hell is going on in this world? I know so many people that refuse to check the news and see what's happening with current events but would have the latest B.Net update the day it comes out..
I know my rant/argument is nothing close to concise and hits many various areas without evidence and whatnot, but this is coming straight from my heart.. I feel for Japan even though I could ignore it and live my life without being affected until something actually happens to us... think about how BAD the tsunami must've been.. a huge body of water traveling @ speeds of 500mph and 30-40 ft (think about this: a street light pole is about 20-30ft)? That explains the lack of time given to evacuate.. oh, how i mourn.. :[ after your post, please leave a heart if you feel the same way<3
Please pray for Japan, it could've been any country :'[
 
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You know why nobody really cares on a personal level unless you have some actual connection to the people? Because 13.000 is a piss in the ocean compared to all the men, women and children that dies from diseases such as malaria every day, every year. If everyone mourned all the people that dies in disasters nobody would do anything other than mourning.
It's tragic for the people involved not for me personally.
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United States24680 Posts
Some people do have horrible attitudes about tragedy hitting other countries, but I don't think it's right for you guilt all your friends either. You can't spend every day of your life getting upset over the deaths of people elsewhere or your life will suck.
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^ oh my gosh these people are the typical, horrible people, that don't contribute anything in their life ^
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What's tragic is tragic, can't say much more about that. It's very unfortunate, sad, and I do hope the people there will be able to cope and make better of their situation.
Now like what Hynda said above, people don't really care too much unless they are connected to them on a personal level. Most people will agree and think that it's sad, but sadly the reality is they understand that talking about it won't change anything. If you really want to help, donate money.. imo that's the most direct aid you can give them
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On March 23 2011 19:05 micronesia wrote:
Some people do have horrible attitudes about tragedy hitting other countries, but I don't think it's right for you guilt all your friends either. You can't spend every day of your life getting upset over the deaths of people elsewhere or your life will suck.
Some people do get flack for being all or nothing aswell, I know plenty of good people that couldn't give a shit about Japan, not because they are asshats but because if they did they would have to care for every single disaster and you can't live your life like that.
"^ oh my gosh these people are the typical, horrible people, that don't contribute anything in their life ^"
This I find hillarious since I have Japanese friends and am indeed personally invested in the Japanese disasters. That doesn't mean I throw logic out the door.
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Netherlands45349 Posts
Ignorance is bliss, sometimes it is better not to know about the horrors which truly exist on this world.
On the other hand, while it might be tragic that they do not ''care'', it is simply because they are so far away, no personal connection evokes no emotions at some people. Especially if they are far away(as in Japan far away or Europe).
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I understand how it can be strange that thousands of people are dying, and the world just goes on as if nothing is happening. However, it has nothing to do with "today's society". If we go back in time just a few decades, almost no one would have known about the crisis and it would have mattered even less. Globalization and the fact that we are constantly in touch with most of the world means that such events have become more relevant and feel closer to us.
However, that does not mean that we as humans relate the same ways to images and news of distant events as we do to something that occurs in our vicinity. I can be endlessly sympathetic, but as some point it just starts being hard to feel as strongly about every disaster. It sounds like you greatly emphasize the 13.000 dead or missing in Japan, but did your mourn just as much when the earthquakes in Pakistan happened, killing many more? Often our reactions are not controlled by our own sympathies, but the media coverage. What has happened in Japan is scary in many ways: shows the partial break-down of a modern society (something many in some ways fear due to the economical crisis), shows the powerlessness of human beings against the forces of nature, shows the dangerous nature of nuclear material. Because Japan is such a significant country and some unique things are happening, this crisis has been highlighted more than others. People do care, and it is relevant, but you cannot stop your life because of it.
Every day we hear of thousands dying in Africa. Terrible things are going on all over the world, and if you want, you could fight for endless causes all hours of the day. Being able to compartmentalize grief and go on with your life is are part of your ability as a human to survive. People who are able to go on and do their duties in society regardless of what is going around the world are doing you a favour and helping your society. Being able to focus on and help those in your vicinity can be just as noble as being able to help people on the other side of the world. Needing to feel some deep kind of regret about what is happening is Japan does not make you "intelligent" or "sympathetic". It all comes down to how you treat the people around you, and from the sound of it, you are harassing your colleagues and friends because of your own self-justified need for penance for your good fortune.
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you say that you care but what are you actually doing to help them apart from watching cnn and writing blog posts on teamliquid? imo unless you are totally devoting all of your wake time to actually helping the people in japan, you cant say that you REALLY care about them.
the livelyhoods of 13,000 people would be more important than the your own single one right?
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Well, I would agree that "our current society in USA" is rather indifferent about current events around the globe; at least the younger generation. I'm not even sure if some of my friends even watch the news at least online.
Japan's situation is indeed sad, but some countries had it worse:Haiti earthquake 2010, Pakistan flood that covered 1/5 of the country in water, but the foreign donation was tiny, because people were afraid the money would somehow find itself in the hands of Taliban.
Like many people already mentioned, unless the event affects someone they know, people will not likely to be that emotionally affected.
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When I first read this blog title I thought it would how well people in Japan reacted to the disaster (no looting, no chaos etc), and if that could be emulated in other societies given the same circumstances. That would have been pretty interesting...
I think its pretty shitty of you to try and guilt your friends. Whats the point? Are you just trying to find affirmation for your own emotions and beliefs by making them feel bad. If you really feel bad and want to do something, do something positive instead and donate money.
The overall impression I get from this blog is that you feel that you are somehow better than the people around you who do not share your reaction to the tragedy that has befallen Japan. Good for you, if wearing this badge of grief makes you feel like you are part of this elite group of "intelligent, understanding and sympathetic Team Liquider's". Good for you if this tragedy entitles you to have your own self-loving blog post where you can ask people to leave a "<3" if they feel the same.
My country was hit by the Asian Tsunami of 2004. Homes, families destroyed. People I knew gone. Yet despite this, I find your post absolutely sickening.
I'm sorry for this angry post, but its coming straight from my heart.
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The point, that people are not grieving the death of 13.000 people, is the lack of personal connection. Stalin was right, when he said the death of 1 person is a tragedy the death of a million is a statistic.
Death, however tragic it is, is a part of life and this not caring attitude is just the distance.
And my anger tells me to not pray for japan but to contribute something real, like donations for organisations that are helping. I actually really hate the people that "pray" that people are getting better but not doing anything real.
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I can't help but feel you've somehow only noticed that people die because the news has showed you tpictures of the Japan disaster? Millions upon millions of children die every day to cureable ailments yet somehow you've only just taken notice and decide to drop a guilt bomb on your friends because they aren't as mournful over a natural part of life as you are.
I find this post highly disrespectful aggrovating, I understand people are upset over a disaster thats taken many peoples lives but ignoring the genocides, diseases and general poverty killing huge swathes of people every year is just downright poor.
The reason why people arent crying in the streets of the west over these things are because they aren't thrust down your throat by the news media. Distant things provide distant reactions, thats just the way it is. If you live your life mourning every disasterous thing that happens in the world you won't be living at all and that, in my opinion, is just disrespectful to those caught up in these things.
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1) donate your money and/or time to relief organizations
2) be informed and willing to talk to people who ask
3) stop thinking you're better than everybody else (or at least stop telling everybody else about how you are), stop guilting your friends
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Each day globally:
Over 1,345,000,000 live on less then $1.25 per day
Over 13,000 children die from starvation
Over 7,000 people die from diarrehea
Over 6,000 people die from HIV/AIDS
Over 3,500 people die from traffic accidents
Over 3,000 infants die from low birth weight
You cant mourn everybody. I cant help but feel that Japan has recieved a lot of coverage because its seen a modern country and has an active press. But when unlucky weather patterns kills millions in China/India/Africa with famine you dont hear about it.
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Attempting to sympathize or even comprehend the gravity of each of the several thousands of lives lost daily is a noble cause, and mourning for those lost in the recent Japan disaster in fact goes hand in hand with such a vision. Unfortunately, assuming you are a human, you are physiologically incapable of treating these lost lives the same as you would treat a lost friend or family member of your own. Not only do you lack the knowledge, you couldn't possibly integrate the equivalent memories, experiences, sympathies no matter how hard you try.
Everyone outside your actual acquaintances will always be units of an abstraction to you. A humanitarian should acknowledge this if he is to actually, pragmatically benefit humanity. Guilt is not logically part of the recipe; it can only serve as an impetus. You serve no one by inspiring such an emotion, only by that emotion inspiring action.
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What exactly have you done to go riding about campus on your high horse?? jesus christ. Talking about weeks after the fact it just feeds whatever emotional fuck up you've got going on.
I also love the logic jump that if you're not crying every day about this that you clearly have no idea about anything major going on in the world.
man pretentious college kids are the best
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On March 24 2011 02:02 kNightLite wrote:
ht
You cant mourn everybody. I cant help but feel that Japan has recieved a lot of coverage because its seen a modern country and has an active press. But when unlucky weather patterns kills millions in China/India/Africa with famine you dont hear about it.
Exactly. Ignorant Americans.
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EPT
